This invention is directed towards a recreational vehicle and more particularly to a braking system for a recreational vehicle.
Typically, when an individual is riding a recreational vehicle such as an all-terrain vehicle or a snowmobile the rider must manually brake the vehicle in order for the vehicle to slow or stop movement. In the event that the rider falls off of, for example, a snowmobile, the snowmobile will slowly decelerate from the rate of speed the snowmobile was travelling at when the rider was dislodged from the snowmobile. When the snowmobile is travelling at a high rate of speed this can result in the snowmobile travelling a very large distance away from the location that the rider was separated from the snowmobile. This is problematic for a number of reasons.
To begin, if a rider is injured and needs their snowmobile to return to seek treatment the snowmobile will be a substantial distance away, which may be difficult or impossible to reach. Additionally, if the rider is near a roadway it is possible that the snowmobile will continue on towards the roadway causing a potential automobile accident if the snowmobile comes near to or enters the roadway.
Even if the rider is not injured and not near a roadway the snowmobile can still be damaged or cause injury. For instance, it is common for snowmobiles to continue movement until an obstacle, such as a tree, rock, or wall is encountered by the snowmobile, which results in significant damage to the snowmobile.
Attempts to address this problem have been made in the art. In particular, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,642,788 and 6,000,487 disclose tethering systems that are attached to a rider. When the rider falls off of the snowmobile the braking system is activated and the snowmobile is stopped. Despite these advances, problems remain. While useful, tethering devices can be cumbersome and often are tied up and not attached to the rider or a person.
Thus is it is a primary object of the invention to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that improves upon the state of the art.
Another object of the invention is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that slows prior to stopping.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that is adjustable.
Another object of the invention is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that is safe.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that is easy to use.
Another object of the invention is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that reduces costs and lost rental income associated with accidents.
A still further objective is to provide a recreational vehicle braking system that reduces injuries to the rider and others.
These and other objectives will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art based upon the following written description.